World Of Tourism

Muttukkadu : A Backwater and estuary, Muttukkadu is ideal for rides on motorized boats or for wind surfing. Hire a pedal boat or a row boat for cruising leisurely. Muttukkadu is ideally suited for angling and fishing.

Apart from pilgrims, Rameswaram is of great interest to marine biologists for; in the waters surrounding the island are beautiful coral reefs. These islands on the west of the Pamban Bridge are an ideal place to explore the sea. 20 kms away, these islands lie between the mainland and the Reefs and can be reached via Mandapam. Completely surrounded by a chain of coral reefs, the shallow waters sustain a remarkable variety of marine life - Starfish, Algae, Sea cucumbers, Crabs, Sponges and many more. There is a famous shrine of Raja Rajeswari Amman about 35 kms from Ramnathapuram built inside a palace. The Gulf of Mannar has been declared as a Bio-sphere Reserve that is being developed as an ecologically sensitive area.

Special police teams have been formed to probe the blast that ripped off a portion of rail track in the wee hours of Saturday in Villupuram district in north Tamil Nadu. The state 'Q' branch police, which deals with extremist organizations, will also help in the investigations.

Villupuram Superintendent of Police P Pakalavan told TOI, "We have constituted five special teams and have begun detailed investigations. We have not made any arrests so far. We are probing all angles."

Police have, however, detained eight persons identified as Tamilvengai, Jothinarasimman, Babu, Ezhil Elango, Ganesan, Ezhumalai, Jayaraman and Kumar for questioning.

Passengers of Chennai-bound Rockfort Express had a miraculous escape when it managed to halt just ahead of the ripped off portion of the track near Perani station. An alert guard, T Rajasekaran, travelling in the Salem-Chennai express, which passed the section earlier, had heard the explosion and alerted the Perani station master. The on-coming Tiruchi-Chennai Rockfort Express, which was directed to proceed slowly, managed to halt about 200 feet ahead of the damaged track.Leaflets protesting Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa's visit to India last week were found at the blast site.

Reacting to the incident, Union home minister P Chidambaram, who was in Chennai on Sunday morning, described it as "an act of extremism".

Chidambaram, who called on chief minister M Karunanidhi at his residence to apprise him about Rajapaksa's India visit, told reporters, "It is an attempted act of extremism. Alert railway officials averted a major disaster. Police and intelligence agencies are working together to nab the culprits. I am confident that the state police will arrest the accused soon."

In a bid to secure the tracks between Tambaram and Villupuram, personnel of the armed railway protection force (RPF) and government railway police (GRP) plan to man the railway tracks by moving to and fro on trolleys.

Meanwhile, a forum comprising of human rights organizations led by Scheduled Tribe Protection Movement secretary Prabha Kalvimani sought a free and fair investigation into the explosion. The forum that met on Sunday passed resolutions urging the police not to target human rights activists and Sri Lankan Tamil sympathizers and link them with the blast.

source:- The Times Of India

Chennai bound passengers Rock Fort Express was a breathtaking escape on Saturday break of day when the driver has stopped the train straight away after receiving the warning, an explosion near the railway station Perani, 160 km.

Explosion damaged meters from the runway and causes a crater of police officers from four feet Vellupuram whispered.

The driver stopped up the train 200 yards from the injured area, he said, adding that officials of railway Trichy and Chennai have been notified straight away.

Deputy Inspector General of Railways Pon Manickavel and other officials visited the place.

The repairs and traffic should again before 9:00, officials thought.

A train in the Southern quarter of Chennai has been belated explosion. Rock Fort Express, Pearl City Express, Kanyakumari Express, Mumbai-Madurai Express and others were under arrest at in the middle. Trains leave here for Guruvayoor, Pondicherry and other places, too late.

DMK leader and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi, one of India's most senior politicians, bowed 87 Thursday.

A key proposal from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Karunanidhi began the day by cutting a cake at his dwelling in Gopalapuram area here so close aides and family members cheered him.

A day earlier, he had formally transferred his house to a trust with a request that the property be rehabilitated into a hospital after he and his wife Dayalu Ammal die.

From his home, went to Karunanidhi memorials of DMK founder and former chief minister CN Annadurai and EVK Periyar, who founded the Dravid Kazhagam, DMK which arose.

At the memorial, he gave out white doves.

The chief minister also visited the DMK headquarters here, where a large number of party members and other leaders greeted him and gave him a shawl as a token gift.

Leaders of various political parties expressed their greetings to Karunanidhi, who has been Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu five times and has won every election he fought Assembly since 1957.

Although a regional satrap Karunanidhi has played a major national role as India began to experiment with coalition governments from 1989.

His eldest son M.K. Azhagiri's minister for chemicals and fertilizers in the Manmohan Singh government. Youngest son M.K. Stalin's deputy minister and daughter K. Kanimozhi a Rajya Sabha MP.

His grand nephew Dayanidhi Maran, minister for textiles in the central government.

Karunanidhi entered politics as a student activist at the age of 14, he is also a renowned playwright and director in Tamil cinema, and has written dozens of books and plays.

He took responsibility for the DMK after Annadurai's death in 1969. Although the parties have lost influence in recent years in Tamil Nadu, it is still a force to be reckoned with.

Coastal areas of north Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh are predictable to witness heavy rainfall and very strong winds as Cyclone "Laila" intensify in the Bay of Bengal about 700 km southeast of Chennai.

"Today's ecological circumstances and weather models show the system is likely to intensify further and move in a west-northwesterly direction towards the Andhra Pradesh coast," an advisory issued by India Meteorological section said today.

The weather office has warned that gale force wind speeds reach 65-75 km / h were likely to start together and the Andhra Pradesh coast in the evening.

"Fishermen should not dare to enter the open sea," said not compulsory said, and refers to the rough seas.

The weather office said the experts were relatively invariable cyclone path and the state authorities concerned have been informed so that they could plan their response for that reason.

Monsoon watchers were closely monitoring the impact of Cyclone Laila on recurring rain that began with a shower in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Last year, the cyclone struck Aila parts of Orissa and West Bengal shortly after the onset of monsoon, and sucks moisture from the atmosphere and thus delays the expansion of additional precipitation.